Department of Pediatrics

Residency Training Program

Research

Current Areas of Research

Residents have lots of opportunity to engage in research endeavors. Current areas of research in the Pediatrics Department of the University of New Mexico are comprised of a diverse array of topics and studies. UNM Health Sciences Center has an ongoing commitment to excellence in producing scholarly and creative works geared toward the collaborative, interdisciplinary efforts of the School of Medicine, College of Nursing, and College of Pharmacy faculty. Our research program promotes scientists from both clinical and basic science disciplines into programs of translational research that are dedicated to finding ways to advance and improve healthcare.

Major Areas of Research

Aging: Longitudinal study of aging process; body composition of the elderly; health status of elderly Hispanics.

Endocrinology: Growth hormone action; regulation of FSH, LH, prolactin, estrogen, and testosterone secretion in acquired hypogonadism of aging and in athletes; pituitary-end-organ function in depressed patient; regulation of gene expression of corticotropin-releasing factor.

Immunology: Tumor immunology; pathobiology; effects of aging on the immune system.

Infectious Diseases: Therapies influencing HIV biology; long-term follow-up of hantavirus infection; papillomavirus infection inducing cervical dysplasia.

Metabolism: Insulin delivery systems; counterregulatory hormones in type 1 and 2 diabetes; brittle diabetes; stable isotope studies of glucose production and disposal; glucose clamp investigations; diabetic complications: neuropathy; role of aldose reductase by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR); brain energy metabolism during hypoglycemia; diabetes prevention program; minimal model in gestational diabetes; Diabetes Prevention Trial, type 1 diabetes.

Neonatology: Pulsed Doppler flow; infections in newborns; bronchopulmonary dysplasia; cerebral hemorrhage in premature infants; adrenal function in newborns; neonatal pulmonary function; growth factors in neonates; high-frequency ventilation, oxygen utilization in newborns; erythropoietin and cytokine use in critically ill infants.

Nephrology: Hemodynamics of diabetic nephropathy; endothelin-1 and hypertension in end-stage renal disease.

Neurology: Proton NMR spectroscopy of brain in multi-infarct dementia; natural history of multiple sclerosis by NMR; magnetoencephalography application in stroke.

Nutrition: Obesity; nutrition in the elderly.

Oncology: Application of recombinant marrow-stimulating hormones in high-dose chemotherapy.

Pediatrics: Protein and ketone turnover in critically ill infants and children: pharmacotherapy of acute asthma; mechanical ventilation and hemodynamics.

Psychiatry: Treatment of schizophrenia; informed consents.

Sports Medicine: Investigation of hydration in competitive athletes.

Women and Minority Health: Health in elderly Hispanics; genetics of asthma in Hispanics; hypoglycemia in diabetic Zuni Indians; molecular epidemiology of breast cancer in New Mexico Hispanics; aldose reductase gene expression in Hispanics; stroke incidence among Hispanics and Native Americans; renal disease in Zuni Indians.

Click Here to Find our Faculty Publications

Residents Research Projects || 2005 to Present

Jennifer Achilles - "Improving Access to HIV Treatment in Lesotho, Africa: Training Peers in Family Case Management," Poster Presentation, Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, April 29, 2006

Galen Barnes - "The Zia Pueblo Bike Project," Poster Presentation, Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, April 29, 2006

Sara Bluefeather - New Futures Well Child Care," Poster Presentation, Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, April 29, 2006

Shannon Brown - "Behavioral Transitions in Children with Autism and Children with Down Syndrome," Poster Presentation, Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, May 2, 2006

Matthew Carter - "Pervasive Development Disorders," First Born Early Intervention Program, June 2, 2008, Silver City, NM

Alma Chavez - "Filling the Dental Service Gap," Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting, Toronto, Canada, May 5, 2007

Tom Cushing - TH Cushing, SS Winter, CL Clericuzio, "Transient Myeloproliferative Disorder in a Non-Down Syndrome Infant with Blast Cell Mosaicism for Trisomy 21: what is the Risk for Leukemia and Pathogenesis?", Journal of Investigative Medicine, v53, no1, January 2005

"Is this Toriello-Carey Syndrome", Western states Pediatrics Research Conference, Monterey Beach Hotel, Monterey, California, February 5, 2005

"Transient Myeloproliferative Disorder in a Non-Down Syndrome Infant with Blast Cell Mosaicism for Trisomy 21: What is the Risk for Leukemia and Pathogenesis", Western States Pediatrics Research Conference, Resident’s Forum, Monterey Beach Hotel, Monterey, California, February 5, 2005

"Hornet Health: Using Print Media to Improve High School Students Attitudes Towards Health," Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting, Toronto, Canada, May 5, 2007

"C1q nephropathy in pediatric idiopathic nephritic syndrome," Pediatric Research Week Poster, April 17, 2008

Katrina Iverson - "Point of Care Testing for Urine Cotinine Levels in an Outpatient Setting," Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting, Poster Presentation, May 3-6, 2008, Honolulu, HI

Aldo Maspons - Mural: Teach, Inspire, Empower," Wylder Lectures, New Mexico Pediatric Society Annual Spring Meeting, March 17, 2007

Shrena Patel - "Erythropoietin mRNA and Protein Expression in the Developing Human Eye," Poster Presentation, Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, April 30, 2006

Tina Petersen - "Familial Cerebral Cavernous Malformations and the Absence of Concurrent Developmental Venous Anomalies in a Southwest United States Hispanic Population," Poster Presentation, American Society of Neuroradiology Annual Meeting, June 2, 2008, New Orleans, LA

Thomas Russell - "Differential Expression of Ikaros in Monozygotic Twins with MLL-rearranged Precursor-B Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia," Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting, Poster Presentation, Honolulu, Hawaii, May 3-6, 2008

Julie Shakib - "Maternal & Infant Immunity to Pertussis"; the goal is to compare maternal serum, umbilical cord serum and infant serum at 2 months to look for IgG to pertussis specific antigens.

Leslie Strickler - "Occult Bacteremia in Children in a Healthcare Setting with Poor Immunization Coverage Rates," Poster and Abstract, National Conference and Exhibition, American Academy of Pediatrics, Washington, DC, October 8-11, 2005

Yolandra Toya - "Characteristics of Incarcerated Native American Youth in a State-run Facility", International Meeting on Inuit and Native American Child Health, Indian Health Service, Seattle, April 30, 2005

"Juvenile Justice Advocacy for Native American Youth: Changes in Statewide Policies Following a Research Study on Native Incarcerated Adolescents in New Mexico," 2nd International Meeting on Indigenous Children Health, April 20-22, 2007, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

"Characteristics of New Mexico Native American Incarcerated Adolescents", NIH Grant Project Gayle Dine-Chacon, MD, Principle Investigator; Yolandra Toya, MD, Co-PI